Boston Red Sox's Bianca Smith on breaking boundaries as baseball's first black female coach

Bianca Smith became the first black female coach in professional baseball history when she was hired by the Boston Red Sox in January 2021.

She is one of a growing number of landmark female appointments in Major League Baseball (MLB), as well as across wider elite professional sports teams in the United States.

Smith started her Red Sox career at the franchise's development facility in Fort Myers, Florida, working in a range of coaching roles, and is now being promoted to a full-time coaching position for the impending 2022 season.

This year she will also be joined at the Red Sox by Katie Krall following her appointment as a development coach with their minor league affiliate team the Portland Dogs, at AA level — two tiers below the major leagues.

Something is clearly happening in baseball, though change always brings out one or two teething problems: «When they initially ordered uniforms, they were not prepared to have a five-foot coach,» Smith explains, when discussing her first year with the Red Sox.

«So, the first week my uniform was really big on me and eventually they ended up making me another uniform that fit a little bit better. Thankfully, I'm used to that.

»It's a little bit different getting to know the players, being a woman trying to build those relationships, because obviously I can't relate in quite the same way.

«But I mean, I'm used to that too. So I was able to build up relationships, I think I just have to approach it a little bit differently than the other coaches do.»

When it comes to relationships, the 30-year-old feels any time a player comes to her and wants to talk about something that's not baseball-related, she considers it a «big deal».

«That means I've developed that relationship, but they've learned